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JOINT CIRCULAR No.302/1997/TTLT-BTCCBCP-BTP OF DECEMBER 30, 1997 GUIDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A NUMBER OF PROVISIONS ON ORGANIZING LEGAL DEPARTMENTS OF THE MINISTRIES, THE MINISTERIAL-LEVEL AGENCIES AND THE AGENCIES ATTACHED TO THE GOVERNMENT

To uniformly implement a number of provisions of Decree No.94-CP of September 6, 1997 of the Government on organizing legal departments of the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the agencies attached to the Government (hereafter collectively referred to as the ministerial legal departments), the Ministry of Justice and the Government Commission on Organization and Personnel jointly provide the following guidances on some points regarding the ministerial legal departments:

I. ESTABLISHMENT AND RE-ORGANIZATION OF THE MINISTERIAL LEGAL DEPARTMENTS

1. The ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the agencies attached to the Government, which have the State management function and have not set up their own legal departments, shall, basing themselves on their respective legal requirements and workload, establish legal departments or legal sections in accordance with the provisions of Article 3, Decree No.94-CP. A legal section may be attached to the ministry's office or to the minister, the head of the branch.

The legal departments shall be set up by decision of the Prime Minister at the proposals of the ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government, after consulting the Minister-Chairman of the Government Commission on Organization and Personnel and the Minister of Justice.

The legal sections shall be set up by decision of the ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies and the heads of the agencies attached to the Government.

2. In cases where the legal departments or legal sections have been already set up, they shall be organizationally kept intact or re-structured in accordance with the provisions of Point 1, this Section, depending on the legal requirements and workload.

3. In cases where such legal organizations have been established jointly with others (such as the legal-general affairs department; the inspection-legal department; the policy-legal department; the legal-general affairs section attached to the ministry's office...), they shall be now split up and re-organized in accordance with the provisions of Point 1, this Section. At the same time, there should be plans on organizing the fields of work which have been paired with the legal organizations along the direction of assigning the existing organizations to undertake such fields of work; in cases where separate organizations are needed for such fields, proposals thereon must be submitted to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision.

II. TITLES AND CRITERIA OF PERSONNEL OF THE MINISTERIAL LEGAL DEPARTMENTS

The titles and criteria of personnel of the ministerial legal departments mentioned in Article 2, Decree No.94-CP shall be determined according to professional criteria set out for State officials and employees working in the judicial branch, issued together with Decision No.483/TCCB-QD of July 26, 1993 of the Minister of Justice, which shall be applied to each ministry's branch and domain, as follows:

1. The legal personnel must have the degree of bachelor of law, and the professional knowledge and skills related to their own ministry and branch;

2. Attention should be paid to the selection, arrangement and employment of officials and employees of the expert-level or higher so that they may well perform their tasks and exercise their powers as well as the tasks and powers of the ministerial legal departments;

3. For legal personnel who have the degree of bachelor of law, already participated in the practical elaboration of legal documents but have no specialized knowledge, the concerned ministries or branches shall have to work out plans for further training of such personnel so that they can acquire the specialized knowledge;

4. For legal personnel with bachelor degrees in specialized branches and with professional experience, who have participated in the elaboration of legal documents but have no legal knowledge, concerned ministries or branches should coordinate with the Ministry of Justice in working out plans for training and fostering them in legal matters so as to raise their levels and knowledge.

Annually, the Ministry of Justice shall organize refresher courses on legal document elaboration techniques and introduce newly-promulgated legal documents to the contingent of legal personnel.

III. TIME-LIMIT AND TEMPO FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OR RE-ORGANIZATION OF THE MINISTERIAL LEGAL DEPARTMENTS

In furtherance of Article 7, Decree No.94-CP, the ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government shall, within 3 months from the date this Decree takes effect, have to establish or re-organize the ministerial legal departments. So, as prescribed above, by December 21, 1997, the establishment or re-organization of the ministerial legal departments must be completed. The Ministry of Justice and the Government Commission on Organization and Personnel request the ministries and branches, which have not yet set up or re-organized their legal departments, to quickly proceed with the establishment or re-organization of such legal departments.

The Ministry of Justice, the Government Commission on Organization and Personnel request the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the agencies attached to the Government to submit reports on organization and operation of the legal departments of their own ministries and branches to the Government Commission on Organization and Personnel and the Ministry of Justice before January 30, 1998.

The Minister of Justice

NGUYEN DINH LOC

The Minister-Chairman of the Government Commission on Organization and Personnel

DO QUANG TRUNG